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Emily Costa, PhD

@emcosta.bsky.social
262 followers 463 following 16 posts

🧬 science communicator and cancer biologist 🎭 co-host of @factsmachinepod.bsky.social 🌿 preferably in the woods petting the moss opinions mine (she/her/hers)

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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Carolyn Bertozzi @carolynbertozzi.bskyverified.social · 30/07/2026
“If the government hadn’t funded research into desert lizard venom, we wouldn’t know about semaglutide…If research scientists hadn’t studied how bees optimize nectar foraging within a colony, we wouldn’t have the algorithm that assigns internet traffic” www.publicnotice.co/p/michael-kr...
publicnotice.co
The new "science golden age" looks suspiciously like a grift
Trump wants to run scientific research like his family business.
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Aaron Sojourner @aaronsojourner.org · 25/07/2026
Admirable clarity @science.org
The Trump administration hates academic science funding, full stop. They hate where that money goes, and they hate who it goes to. They want to keep all that money for themselves, to hand out to favored cronies who can help them get elected and to steer yet more money and more power back into their hands.

That’s it. That’s the story
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
I hate how much I love grant writing 🫠
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Shobita Parthasarathy @shobitap.org · 23/07/2026
I suffered through Kratsios' answer to Science: the Endless Frontier. The NYT summary is good, but there's more to it. And I should say that I welcome improvements to the scientific enterprise (which is why I'm participating in @alondra.bsky.social and Jenny Reardon's Public's Science project). 🧵
nytimes.com
Trump’s Plan for Science: More Money for A.I., Less for Universities (Gift Article)
Michael Kratsios, President Trump’s science adviser, proposed overhauling how the government funds research. Democrats said Mr. Trump’s actions had weakened science.
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Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Glad to see this story and coverage of an important paper. www.statnews.com/2026/06/17/n... 1/16
statnews.com
NIH diversity programs doubled undergraduates’ odds of getting a Ph.D., 20-year study finds
A new study found that two diversity-oriented programs supported by the NIH doubled the odds that an undergraduate would earn a Ph.D.
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Kathleen Bachynski @bachynski.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
“The rule is catastrophic… it means that cancer patients, including those in active treatment, could be forced to work the same number of hours as a healthy person — regardless of whether that’s physically possible, just to keep the health insurance coverage that they rely on to stay alive.”
statnews.com
Lawmakers promised cancer patients would be protected from Medicaid cuts. Now CMS says otherwise
“One of the cancer community’s worst fears is coming to pass,” writes Gwen Nichols of Blood Cancer United.
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Prof. Nicole Holliday @mixedlinguist.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
Humanity did that. Science did that. Publicly-funded research did that. Excellent universities did that. Diversity did that. International cooperation did that. Artemis II is a perfect example of what we can do at our best. Welcome home, Integrity crew!
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Science Magazine @science.org · 09/04/2026
In the 1950s, scientists tried to define "normal" humans. The problem? They couldn't find any. 🎧 Listen to episode one of "The normals," Science's newest podcast series: scim.ag/4mj0bVY
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
Attention Science Communicators! We are conducting a survey on the landscape of science communication & need your help gathering experiences. Please send this to #SciComm ppl you know. We want to get as thorough a sense of the state of the field as we can. umiami.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
A block of text that says "Scientists at the University of Miami are carrying out a research study on trends in the field of science communication. 

For this survey we are defining science communication as work that is done: 

• by a technical subject area expert in some field related to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics, 
• outside of classroom settings 
• aimed at the public 

If you are 18 years of age or older and work or recently worked in this field (full-time, part-time, or as a side project), please click the link below to complete a short survey. If you are interested in learning more about this research study, please e-mail us at Julia.wester@miami.edu. In the body of your email please provide your full name, and if you would prefer to be contacted by phone, your phone number and the best time to reach you. Contacting us for more information does not commit you to participating, and should you decide to participate you may terminate your participation at any time."
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
depths of wikipedia @depthsofwikipedia.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
wikipedia turns 25 today! the last unenshittified major website! backbone of online info! triumph of humanity! powered by urge of unpaid randos to correct each other! somehow mostly reliable! "good thing wikipedia works in practice, because it sure doesn't work in theory" - old wiki adage
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 28/12/2025
Dropping in just to say that everyone is overusing em dashes!
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 19/12/2025
Scientists. I want you to think of science communication projects you'd like to make happen in your neighborhood/town/city. Really think about it for a moment. Imagine that you're funding it yourself. How much is the minimum you'd need to make it happen?
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Brian Goldstone @brian-goldstone.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
It's hard to express what it meant to watch Maurice, Natalia, Celeste, and Rhea tell their stories—in their own voices—this morning. The segment revealed a brutal reality: homelessness at this scale isn't about personal failure. It's the result of policy choices and systems built to exploit people.
cbsnews.com
When the employed are pushed into homelessness
In America we are taught hard work is the key to success. But despite having full-time jobs, many families are locked out of the rental housing market, due to low wages, soaring rents and poor credit,...
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
A new banger in the "Why doesn't this random animal get cancer!?" genre of biological inquiry
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 24/10/2025
Yet again, we can't afford to let LLMs become a source of epistemic grounding for society.
bbc.co.uk
Largest study of its kind shows AI assistants misrepresent news content 45% of the time – regardless of language or territory
An intensive international study was coordinated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and led by the BBC
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Alex Ip 葉清霖 @alexip718.com · 17/10/2025
There seems to be a concerted, coordinated effort from the White House and various governmental agencies to join Bluesky en masse prior to the "No Kings" protest and flood the zone. A reminder that the Trump admin is monitoring social media platforms to find excuses to revoke visas:
reuters.com
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
The Xylom @thexylom.com · 25/09/2025
EXCLUSIVE: A new analysis by The Xylom's @alexip718.com shows for the first time just how much America’s top research institutions have grown to depend on H-1B skilled workers — and how this delicate balance might be disrupted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s crackdown on legal immigration.
thexylom.com
The Most Detailed Maps of H-1B Visa Holders Joining America's Top Research Institutions
A new analysis by The Xylom shows for the first time just how much America’s top research institutions have grown to depend on the specialized knowledge of H-1B skilled workers — and how this…
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Nsikan Akpan @monscience.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
If you read one story about the autism announcement, make it @amymaxmen.bsky.social's. One detail that others miss: "Fevers can harm the mother and the developing fetus, she said, adding that fevers are more strongly associated with autism than Tylenol." kffhealthnews.org/news/article...
kffhealthnews.org
‘Sick to My Stomach’: Trump Distorts Facts on Autism, Tylenol, and Vaccines, Scientists Say - KFF Health News
The White House’s autism announcement exaggerates links to Tylenol, misleads on vaccines, and sets back the field by ignoring decades of research, scientists say.
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
So many academics are on HB-1 visas. This is another attack by #RussellVought on universities and scientific research. Stop telling me anything this administration does is in good faith or with any sort of policy goal except destruction.
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
It's true, but also my favorite thing is talking to folks about what we know, what we don't, and why when it comes to cancer research so...hit a girl up! (P.S. one of the earliest targeted therapies ever is for the BCR-ABL1 fusion and we still study gene fusions as a way to target various cancers!)
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Mark Histed @markhisted.org · 14/09/2025
The VC model is the antithesis of good basic science. Basic science is best when many labs are funded over the long-term, when many different scientists pursue their own ideas. Let a thousand flowers bloom —and support them. VC investment is about relentless, exponential growth.
But starting in the late 1980s, that investment in basic science began to pay
off, driving a revolution in the molecular biology of cancer. Though it took decades, the cancer investment increase in the
1970s has led to a cornucopia of new cancer cures today. Immunotherapies,
CAR-T cell treatments, checkpoint inhibitors, and precision drug targeting are all a product of that basic science work.
And that progress has contributed to increased quality of life. Between 1991 and 2019, the risk of dying of cancer dropped by 31%. This is a common story for basic scientific research: it's a long-term investment, one that only governments have the time horizon to make, and it brings enormous payoffs. The payoffs are both economic, generating jobs, and in better health, generating cures. And the US scientific research system is complex, painstakingly constructed, and easy to
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anthrofuentes.bsky.social @anthrofuentes.bsky.social · 29/07/2025
This is not the time to step back from diversity, equity, and inclusion | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
This is not the time to step back from diversity, equity, and inclusion
Recently, I exchanged views with a prominent Ivy League scientist who was complaining about the minority students and junior faculty applying to his program. He claimed that the university, through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, was ...
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 21/07/2025
“a court order can’t reinstate months of lost treatment for a cancer patient… It’s hard to put a price on the value of research that might be years away from a new drug or treatment...It’s even harder for those who have been kicked out of clinical trials…where the stakes are clearly life or death”
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Scott L Greer @scottlgreer.bsky.social · 19/05/2025
Expired: patient-centeredness is efficient Tired: patient-centeredness improves quality Wired: patient-centeredness fights fascism
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Linda Bessin @lindabessin.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
This was posted this morning by Humans of New York and I think this captures exactly what we are all experiencing right now
“It’s a weird time. I’ve still got to get to work on time, pay my bills, manage chronic illness, all that stuff, while the world in general seems to be falling apart. It can be a challenge to juggle those two things while making sure one of them doesn't completely destroy my mental health. It’s just an odd thing to be like: ‘Oh, all of these atrocities are being committed in Gaza with my tax dollars, but what am I going to eat for dinner?’ Or: ‘Trump just dismantled another check on his power. We’re slowly sliding into fascism, nobody’s stopping him-- but what concert should we go to this weekend?’ The strangest part about the whole thing is that we’ve never been so connected. I could understand if this was eighty years ago; news travelled slowly. But now, in an instant, you get these facts, photos, videos. Verified by credible news, verified by aid organizations—and nobody cares. Well, a lot of people care. But the people who can actually fix things: they don’t care. Instead of standing up for the voiceless, they’d rather lay low, cling to their money or status. It’s hard to be a person who cares right now. Sometimes you just want to melt into your bed or couch and be with your feelings. But I won’t say that I feel hopeless. I’d never say that, because that’s what they want—those people who only care about winning, who don’t care about collateral damage. They want people to feel powerless. And I’m not going to give them that luxury. There are still reasons to be hopeful. Zohran just won the primary. And that’s a sign of change, in New York City at least. Even the people who don’t agree with his politics have to admit: his campaign was built on community. It wasn’t funded by billionaires. This was a campaign of fifty thousand people who volunteered, and canvassed, and made calls. Last week a lot of people who had been feeling powerless realized that they still have some power in this country. Let’s just hope a lot more people are learning from that.”
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Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
“It takes a lot to pull one over on New Yorkers, and when we looked around, the city described in Cuomo attack ads simply did not exist. We recognize that the city’s problems come mostly from the people above, and not the ones sitting next to us on the subway.”
thehandbasket.co
We can have nice things
Zohran Mamdani proved you can fully embrace progressive values—and win.
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Esper Quinn 💠 @esper.bsky.social · 25/06/2025
just wanna put these two images next to each other for posterity's sake
$25 million in superpac money going to cuomo43.5% of vote for zohran, 36.3% of vote for cuomo lol
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Deva Woodly @devawo.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
I just like to post these data from time to time to puncture the mythological aura of mid 20th c protests. They were less popular than pretty much any 21st c mass action & people criticizing them used the same lines. Protest is about people coming together, shaping narratives, & building power.
Polling data from Harris & Associates 1966. 
Q: Do you approve of what Freedom Riders are Doing? 22% approve 61%disapprove18%no opinion.
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Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 07/06/2025
Today is the last day to comment on schedule F, Russ Vought's plan to politicize the civil service, by making many positions political appointments. Please take the time to comment today. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/last-day-t...
donmoynihan.substack.com
Last chance to weigh in on Trump's plan to politicize the civil service
Trump has already shown us how he would use Schedule F powers
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Isabel @isabelott.bsky.social · 06/06/2025
academics logging on to bluesky together on a friday afternoon
3 recently bathed fluffy black and white kittens meme. they all look variably alarmed and confused. original caption was: "Something happened," which i think says it all
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Paula Croxson (she/her) @paulacroxson.bsky.social · 30/05/2025
💫 Please share these resources widely - they are designed to track what we know and make sense of things in a well-sourced and fact-checked way. The page on medical research in particular covers a lot of ground and will be updated regularly. 🧪
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 05/06/2025
Bill & Ted's Excellent Breadventure
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Jarrod Dudakov @dudakov-lab.bsky.social · 03/06/2025
Great piece and highlights what we need to be making clearer.
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 31/05/2025
the "Veep plot point or real life?" @mcsweeneys.net quiz that lives in my mind getting more difficult by the day
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Emily Costa, PhD @emcosta.bsky.social · 29/05/2025
"...this Executive Order is positioning policymaking to ignore scientific evidence by holding it to unachievable standards, and to use ideology and non-scientific information by holding it to no standards at all."
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American Meteorological Society @ametsoc.org · 28/05/2025
Federal weather & climate science is under threat. Starting TODAY at 3:00 PM ET, join a coalition of scientists--including AMS leaders--for a 100-hour livestream. Learn what federal science does for you, ask questions, and help build awareness to "Save Our Forecasts": wclivestream.com
Graphic for the Weather & Climate Livestream.
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Maggie Astor @maggieastor.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
A huge step from HHS that is at odds with science showing significant risks for young children and pregnant women — and that directly contradicts *the FDA's own publication* from last week listing pregnancy as a high-risk condition that would qualify people for this fall's Covid vaccine
A tweet from HHS secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.:

Today, the COVID vaccine for healthy children and healthy pregnant women has been removed from @CDCgov recommended immunization schedule. Bottom line: it's common sense and it's good science. We are now one step closer to realizing @POTUS's promise to Make America Healthy Again.
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Brian Nosek @briannosek.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
I forgot about this great story by @cragcrest.bsky.social from 2017. The story, and my comment, are as relevant today as they were then.
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Sarah McAnulty, Ph.D. @sarahmackattack.bsky.social · 28/05/2025
You have FOUR (4) more days to order a Biology is Bigger than Binaries shirt, designed by the lovely and talented @franzanth.bsky.social. In this nightmare of a year, merch is keeping @skypeascientist.bsky.social afloat. Even if you don't order, RT's help so much! Get 'em: squidfacts.bigcartel.com
Two identical shirt designs but one is magenta and one is orange. It says biology is bigger than binaries and it has a clownfish and a bee and a lily
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Andrea Love, PhD | Biomedical Scientist @drandrealove.bsky.social · 25/05/2025
Biomedical science is based on identifying root causes. It’s called etiology. Bacterial infections, genetic mutations: actual scientists study what causes disease to make therapeutics & diagnostics. That’s our job. It’s WHY all major health advances exist. The wellness world loves to lie. 2/
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Gregg Gonsalves @gregggonsalves.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
I subscribe to the @newyorker.com, I was part of ACT UP, I knew Larry Kramer well and know Tony Fauci too. Daniel Immerwahr's piece on RFKJr, features this and other passages that need a reponse. 1/
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Ben Lillie @benlillie.bsky.social · 23/05/2025
Tomorrow! Check out the Caveat Sketch Sampler, with a whole bunch of amazing sketch groups! In addition, we'll be trying out a new Powerpoint Karaoke idea, with help from @arksandsciences.bsky.social and @shyaporn.bsky.social caveat.nyc/events/cavea...
caveat.nyc
Caveat Sketch Showcase
Sketches from 5 amazing groups all at once!
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Reposted by Emily Costa, PhD
Gothamist @gothamist.com · 12/05/2025
Scientists have a plan to restore the nearly extinct American chestnut to its abundant glory, and they need New York City residents’ help.
gothamist.com
Chestnut tree giveaway in NYC aims to bring plant back from brink of extinction
The New York Restoration Project has launched an effort to plant 1,000 thriving American chestnut trees that are a hybrid with the blight-resistant Chinese chestnut tree in the five boroughs.
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Shoumita Dasgupta, PhD @profdasgupta.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
"And this isn’t just about their future. It’s about ours...behind every one of [the scientific breakthroughs] is a young scientist who, like the student in my office, trusted that this country believed in the value of science." www.statnews.com/2025/05/07/u...
statnews.com
What am I supposed to say to this generation of young scientists?
Undermining the future of American science is not a path to accountability — it’s a path to decline.
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Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 02/05/2025
Probably every single woman in science in the United States under the age of 50 has been positively impacted by the NSF ADVANCE program in some way. As I hear stories of ADVANCE cancellations, it's hard to really fully grasp the tremendous damage the end of that one program is doing. 🧪
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Stand Up for Science! @standupforscience.net · 30/04/2025
Funding science is an investment for ALL Americans! 📉 Researchers at American University's Institute for Macroeconomic and Policy Analysis found that a 50% reduction of federal science funding would make Americans $10k poorer. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/30/b...
nytimes.com
Trump’s Cuts to Science Funding Could Hurt U.S. Economy, Study Shows (Gift Article)
Reducing federal support for research and development could cause long-run economic damage and reduce government revenue.
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Alondra Nelson @alondra.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
“Many people portray this as a war on the elite in higher education…[but] so much of what is being taken away are the programs that make science look more like America.”
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Emma Scales @emmascales.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
Happy Earth Day! ATTN: fellow scientists!! In defense of science and to increase opportunities for public awareness of the amazing, impactful research being done across the United States, please consider participating in the McClintock Letters initiative :) blogs.cornell.edu/asap/events-...
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Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 19/04/2025
Neil deGrasse Tyson went on Rogan which is a huge bummer but the good news is that there are lots of cool Black 🔭 #scicomm out there and @blackinastro.bsky.social even made a starter pack! 🧪https://go.bsky.app/6nFQdRC
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Daniel Convissor @danielconvissor.bsky.social · 19/04/2025
Actually, flip the headline. It's really "How the Federal Government Became so Dependent on Universities." These competitively awarded, peer reviewed research grants produce tremendous returns on investment. New tech, health, science that benefit all people & businesses in the USA & world.
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